Arcade Fire's Win Butler Got Cut Off at the NBA Celeb Game for Trying to Talk Politics

The Celebrity Game at NBA All-Star Weekend is supposed to be a lighthearted affair. You get Drake to coach. You get Kevin Hart to "spontaneously" unretire and play for Team USA. You get a strange assortment of actors, musicians, and why-are-you-a-celebritys to goof off and make some buckets while they promote their new projects. It's fun for the whole family, even your uncle who thinks Obamacare destroyed capitalism and weakened the resolve of our allies.

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So when Win Butler went off-script, there was a little bit of a freak out. The Arcade Fire frontman, it should be noted, is overtly political, and stumped for Obama in 2008 and 2012. He had just dominated the game from the low post, helping Team Canada to victory, and was awarded MVP for his exploits. But when Sage Steele offered him the mic to comment on his momentous triumph, he didn't quite stay in the bland, sanitized lane the producers had in mind.

"Thank you. I just want to say, as an election year in the U.S., the U.S. has a lot they could learn from Canada: healthcare, taking care of people...."

You can almost hear the producer in the control room right as he mentions the 2016 election: "Roll the guitar music! ROLL THE GUITAR MUSIC!" Sage Steele also saw the writing on the wall (or had the same producer screaming in her ear):

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